Heroes: The Road of Good Intentions

[Marcao]

<Blink>

He arrived near a familiar looking tree and utilized his gift to deny gravity its hold upon him. Within him a mixture of emotions existed ranging from disappointment to regret; Disappointment in how the night had ended up and regret for not having taken more advantage of the situation while he had the chance. He had almost fallen for it, but in the end his desire to maintain his wits had allowed him to respond to the situation as it developed. Well, that and the fact that a tazer had little hope of penetrating his force screen. It had been then with Helena’s deception laid bare that she had been willing to admit a few things. The attraction had not been a lie or so she claimed, but the desired end result was not a night to remember. The desired result had been the loss of his valuable possession and for him to wake up a few hours with nothing more than a lost wallet and a throbbing headache.

He was new to the establishment and he had been alone. He had been a perfect candidate for the attentions of a young woman. A part of him had taken the possibility of foul play into consideration. He never allowed Helena to get him a drink, even if she had seemed more than willing to do so. Furthermore, he was not comfortable drinking to excess. His fear that they were being tracked was too strong to allow for overindulgence. He could not allow himself to drink himself under the table. When it had seemed to him that something was amiss, he had left Helena behind and walked to the bar in order to get a new drink. He had begun to drink virgin margaritas then.

He sighed softly and pushed the memory of Helena aside. Li Na and then her, this was certainly not proving to be a good day for him. His eyes focused on the distance and he once more reached within himself, his power flaring as he took himself to where he wished. He did this two more times before arriving on the balcony that was connected to his room. He saw no one on the patio and assumed that everyone was sleep or otherwise occupied. He walked to the edge of his room, the glass door slid open as he moved within.

He began shedding clothing almost immediately. He had discovered earlier much to his pleasure that his room had a full bathroom attached to it. He planned on using it. He slipped into the bathroom and turned on the light a moment later he was in the tub, a stream of cold water washing over him. He closed his eyes and lost himself in the moment. This was just what he needed after the night he was having.

[LadyTevar]

Li Na heard the water running somewhere in the house. Touching the links, it was none of them... she rose and pulled on a light silken robe, meant more as part of lingerie than actual coverage, but Blackheart had stolen her comfy robe. Then she shadow-slid to see who was in her house.

Silver eyes opened up in a shadow laying across the floor of the Blue Room, just outside the bathroom door. Ah... Elias. He'd been hiding throughout the excitement, it seems.

Out of habit more than anything else, her empathy tried to read his emotions, pushing against the shroud of his mind.

[Marcao]

He sighed beneath the comforting stream of water and began to replay the day in his mind, not all of it but simple the more interesting moments. Their decision to go to Chicago, the attack there, their arrival here. As his mind focused on those events, his hands mechanically went about the process of bathing. He was not certain how much time had passed when he felt something pushed against the shroud that enveloped his mind. He blinked, immediately aware that it was not something but someone.

He moved his face from beneath the shower head and opened his eyes, the bar of soap placed aside as he looked about the bathroom. Surely she wouldn't...and yet a part of him had hoped that she would be that near. The bathroom was empty and he could not quite help but feel disappointment at that. Still, he doubted that Blackheart was not keeping her company. The thought made the contact even more surprising to him. He took fifteen seconds or so to wash away any remnants of soap before the water was shut off and he reached for a towel.

Was she probing him to make sure that he was a friend and not a foe? What sort of foe would infiltrate her home only to go to a bathroom? He dried off quickly, wrapping the towel around his waist before he slowly opened the door that led to his room. He expected that she would be there. He could not lower his mental defenses and as such, if Li Na had questions she would have to find her answers in person.

[LadyTevar]

Silver eyes moved across the floor, rising on a pillar of shadow that solidified into Li Na's human form, wearing a short kimono-style robe in a large hibiscus flower print. "Sorry... I did not mean to bother you," she said quietly, trying to keep her eyes from wandering over Elias' body, mentally comparing it to Blackheart and Garth.

She shouldn't be here. Not now... when she was angry and upset and annoyed....

[Agent Fisher]

Ghost felt the storm hit him, feeling splinter and sliver dig into his face. He saw the rounds pass through the wolf before the sand started to become too much. Just as he squinted his eyes to protect them, he noticed that the sand was roughly outlining him. "Fuck." He looked back up, his eyes nearly shut and saw the wolf closing fast. Ghost stood and took off running, knowing he was only delaying his end by maybe a few seconds.

[Marcao]

His eyes focused on the silver orbs as they seemed to glide across the floor. The shadows twisted and shaped, a pillar of ebon marble that solidified in order to reveal a familiar form. It was certainly familiar but he had not seen her like this before and it took a remarkable amount of effort not to stare. When she spoke he blinked, shaking his head a moment later. "No need to apologize Li Na, you are not bothering me." At that moment he could not believe that anything she could do would bother him. "I did not expect a visit however." He sounded almost embarassed about that.

His eyes flickered over her robe committing every detail to memory. He was only an inch taller than Blackheart but he was heavier, his body showing the signs of hard work. He had always enjoyed physical activity when he was a child and that habit had stuck with him throughout his life. He had competed in the highest levels of the sport before he had joined Ultima with some success. He lacked Blackheart's impressive array of scars, only two were visible one high up near his left shoulder and one lower down near his waist that was partially obscured by the towel that snared his waist at the moment.

There was something about her that was out of place. He had never claimed to have been terribly empathic but there had to be a reason for her to be here before him in the middle of the night. He did not want to bring up Blackheart however, so he found himself in a very tenous position.

"Did I miss something Li Na?" He spoke softly, letting his words sink in. "The house seems quieter than I expected and I can tell that there is something on your mind." A part of him hoped that it was pleasure, but somehow the idea unnerved him. What would Blackheart think? He pushed the thought aside and found himself walking closer to his bed. He was feeling a little exposed at the moment but he could hardly tell her to turn around. His left hand moved, guiding damp hair beneath his left earlobe as he waited for her response.

[LadyTevar]

He knew just the right words... she turned away without asking, her arms crossing her chest in a vain attempt at comfort. "Tasat escaped, when I should have killed him. Gravitas and Blackheart went after him, with Blast."

[B4UTRUST]

Kyosuke drew one of his swords, a full length katana. He leapt from the box he was hiding on and landed in a crouch on the ground, sprinting after the dust storm. With his other hand he traced the symbols for fire and hurled the manifested orb of flame at the outline of Ghost.
"Cease your cowardice, Ghost. I thought you more honorable then this!"

[Marcao]

She turned away and for that moment, a part of him whispered that he had said the wrong thing. A heartbeat later however, he discarded those fears. She was giving him a chance to dress with some privacy. Her arms crossed and he moved, the towel discarded and placed aside as he reached the side of his bed. He slipped into one of the pairs of boxer briefs that she herself had purchased for him earlier.

It was then that her words sunk in and he found himself taking a step towards her and the another. His left hand reached out, brushing against some of her hair gently before he spoke. "What do you mean he escaped?" He did not ask about her assertion that she should have killed him because he believed he knew why. It was more than just the scene he had made, the potential that this house was compromised. No, he doubted that if she and blackheart had been allowed to be...she would be here before him. Tasat's little stunt had done far more than the meta could have imagined.

He wanted to pull his hand back, but he could not. His fingers remaining against her hair as if on their own volition. "If those three are after Tasat, then I expect him caught or killed in short order." That was a great deal of power arranged against the meta but was there anyway for him to be sure? He knew so little of Tasat's powers. His fingers brushed against skin, the tips of his fingers brushing against her shoulder before he forced his hand back. What was he doing?

"I apologize for not having been here Li Na." He spoke softly. He had not expected things to turn this bad this quickly when he had chosen to get away...

[Agent Fisher]

Ghost kept running, feeling the blood start to leak from his face, where the storm had hit him. He yelled back to Kyosuke. "Quit your powers, call off this storm and your animal friends, and then we'll have that honourable match you want. Until then, fuck that shit." He said as he felt the fireball streaked by his left arm, burning his shirt and part of his skin. The pain caused him to stumble, and down he went, landing on the ground.

[B4UTRUST]

Kyosuke slid his fingers into the positions for entrophy symbols, causing Ghost's precious weapons to rust into uselessness. He stopped, standing over the fallen outline of Ghost, swordtip pointed at his throat.
"As soon as you turn visible, we'll discuss terms for honorable combat."

[Agent Fisher]

Ghost decloaked, tilting his head back, both sides bleeding, a defiant look on his face. "Name your terms." He said.

[LadyTevar]

Touch, without the transfer of emotions. Odd how comforting that could be... She turned to face him, and only then realized how close he actually was, forcing her to look up into his face. "... It's... it's ok," she said, looking down.. then quickly away becuase down was not a polite place to look. "You went out, didn't you... I can smell alcohol."







+++++++++++++++One Week Later++++++++

Ghost decloaked, tilting his head back, both sides bleeding, a defiant look on his face. "Name your terms." He said.

"I have a better idea..." came an amused feminine voice from the shadows beneath them. A thick tendril shot out, shoving Kyosuke violently back. "Ghost comes with me..."

Then the inkblack dragon rose and surrounded Ghost, dragging him between to safety, depositing him on the roof of Blackheart's apartment building.

[B4UTRUST]

Kyosuke was shoved backwards but recovered, his blade swinging back to counterstrike. The sword arced through the air and passed through the same air effortlessly. Whatever had been there, was gone. Kyosuke's eyes narrowed as he looked around him.
"Kubira?"
"I smell nothing, master. He is gone."
"Damn you, Argent..."

He resheathed his sword strolled out of the warehouse.

[Agent Fisher]

For a brief moment, Ghost thought he was dead. The blackness had simply swallowed him. Then he reappeared on a rooftop. He closed his eyes and laid his head down, breathing, and feeling the pain from his face and arm. "That was fun." He muttered to himself.

[Marcao]

She turned before him and his eyes instantly sought hers, looking anywhere else was to invite disaster. He was taller than she was, enough so that she had to look up into his face. Her words met with a shake of his head as his left hand gently reached out, brushed against her cheek and gently tried to make her look at him. The contact was firm but gentle enough to surrender the attempt beneath the smallest of resistance. "no, its not. we are a team, and I am supposed to be here. I regret it." He regretted his absence.

She looked away from him, and it did not take long for him to realize why. Her final words met with a nod. "I needed a drink." He did not elaborate, maybe that made him a coward but he saw no easy way of telling her the exact reasons. Having her that close to him was uncomfortable in more ways that she could know, but he was rooted firmly on the spot. He did not believe that he could move away from her if he wished it. His hands moved, his hands touching her own. It was the only part of her body right now that he felt was safe.

"tell me what happened Li Na." Her name left his lips far more softly than he expected. It was little more than a whisper. His heart was racing, the nerves along his body seemed to be on fire but he was holding back. It was not so much that he did not want it to happen. A part of him certainly wished that it would but not like this. He did not wish for their moment to be tainted by unusual circumstances. He wanted Li Na to come to him and only him. Maybe it would never happen, Maybe Li Na was not a one man woman but he could hope. In the end, he might settle for having her anyway he could. Biut he could hope...

"I have been told that I am a good listener." He added.

[LadyTevar]

Li Na told him what he'd missed: her reasons for trying to crush and drown Tasat, of Blackheart stopping her and trying to talk sense into the Sumerian, of her trip to Hawaii... "... so... first he tells me to not kill him... and then that I should have finished the job..." she concluded bitterly, "and now he's gone to do it himself."
Somewhere amidst the telling, his hands had moved to her shoulders, and her arms had uncrossed, her hands resting lightly on his arms. She couldn't read his emotions... she could read his body language. She was just trying to ignore the fact that right now, she was very much in need of closer comfort...


++++++++++ONE WEEK LATER+++++++++

"That was fun." He muttered to himself.

"You're lucky I got there in time, and that Kyosuke-san didn't expect me there, Ghost. What'd you do to tick him off?" Argent told him, once again only silver eyes in a shadow. "Talk fast, I can't stay. Something blew up the shuttle carrying Saibot to Station Zero... a great way to vanish him, don't you think?" The last comment was bitterly ironic.

[Agent Fisher]

Ghost chuckled dryly. "Oh you know, the usual, made a your momma joke." He coughed. "Honestly, Kyosuke killed Frank Pratt, Cascade. And he's planning on killing as many metas, on both sides of the war. And thanks, Argent. Now go back to the team and tell 'em I say hi." He said, his eyes still closed.

[Marcao]

He listened to her when she spoke, his regret at his decision to leave only magnifying. All that had passed in the time that he had chosen to leave? He had seen a cut and dry situation and it had become a bloody train wreck which split the team in two. Half of it staying behind, the other half hunting down the meta in order to either contain his threat or remove it altogether. The bitterness beneath her last words was met with a nod. "I see." His tone was honest and soft, she was close enough that nothing else was needed.

He could clearly understand the source of her frustration. It seemed that Blackheart's words were a contradiction and not entirely fair to her actions. And yet he could imagine the intent beneath Blackheart's words as well. Had he been upset at her actions or that she simply had not made certain that Tasat was no longer a threat? He said nothing however, it was not something he wanted to dwell on and he did not wish to invalidate her feelings.

His hands had moved, ending against her shoulders with her own hands resting lightly on his arms. He felt warm where her skin touched his, nerve endings tingling beneath the contact. She had a long day and a difficult one. He had not been there for her then, would he walk away from her now? The question lingered in his mind and finally he took a chance. He rolled the dice and made his choice. One night with her, a night to measure all others in his life. Maybe it was not the ideal. Maybe it was not meant to last. He knew one thing though. He was done with regret for this night.

"Li Na." Her name left his lips gently and if she looked up at him, if he saw the need in her eyes he would act. His head would dip down, the tip of his nose brushing against hers for a moment before his lips sought hers.

[LadyTevar]

Li Na looked up at Elias... and for the third time that night she found herself kissed.
She shouldn't. Blackheart.....
...
Blackheart be damned. At least Elias knew what he wanted, and wasn't afraid to act. Actions speak much louder, and Li Na's next actions were unmistakable.

***FadetoBlack***



+++++++++++ONE WEEK LATER+++++++++++++++

Ghost chuckled dryly. "Oh you know, the usual, made a your momma joke." He coughed. "Honestly, Kyosuke killed Frank Pratt, Cascade. And he's planning on killing as many metas, on both sides of the war. And thanks, Argent. Now go back to the team and tell 'em I say hi." He said, his eyes still closed.

"Kyosuke?! He's the one killing the Ultima agents?" Argent exclaimed in shock. "Blackheart needs to hear this..."

Argent gave Ghost one more hard look. "... He may want to talk to you... there may be more to this than we know. Get fixed up, I'll find you later tonight after Blackheart's had time to think about it," she said finally. "You're on top of Blackheart's apartment building, just so you know. Try not to let on how you got away, ok?" Then the dragon fountained up out of the shadow, and vanished into another... just to let him know she was gone.

[Agent Fisher]

Ghost layed on that roof for another minute before sitting up. He grabbed his cell phone and called his wife. Five minutes later, his wife was packing and heading out of Millennium City, just to be safe. He shut off the line and then dialed another number. "Go secure, code three-alpha-tango. This is Ghost, tell Boss that Case Loose Justice, Modifier No Sides/No Quarter, is in effect. Subject is Kyosuke Shingure. Possible suspect is part of larger group. Requesting instructions." He said, hanging up the phone. He turned on his comm and made sure it was set to the alternate team frequency. "This is Ghost. Kyosuke is comfirmed hostile. I'm at the following location, requesting a pickup and a medic."

[Haizu]

Tholos was shocked and angered by what had happened at first. But as soon as Li Na reappeared, he could sense that Tasat was very much alive still and he was using his powers in large amounts. "Wherever she dropped him, it really pissed him off." Tholos sighed "I hope he doesn't act on that anger, that could be very bad for all of us."

[LadyTevar]

*With B4's Permission Granted, the Game is jumping forward so we can try to get to RCE before the Shuttle Explosion. This is Day 3, the day that Saibot went to Trial*

-------------- Day 3------------

Li Na's routine had changed a little over the last two days. After the chaos of the first night (with Tasat supposedly dunked in the River Lethe and no longer a problem), she had settled down into waking a little earlier for a moment of quiet before the team got out of bed. Amusingly, she was in the kitchen attempting to make and bake cinnimon rolls, something that Ember had hoarded the recipe to and made only rarely. It was ... calming.

A lot more calming than the aura between herself and Blackheart of late. The trip to Chicago to get the IDs had been ... tense. She thought the fact Blast was there, trying to get a call to his mom, was the only reason she and Blackheart hadn't gotten into a fight. Something had to break there soon...

[Cynical Cat]

Argent reappeared in the shadows of an alley, disgorging both Blackheart and Blast. "We'll let you do your thing Blast and we'll meet up later," said Blackheart. "There's a few things we need to talk about."

He addressed Argent. "This should only take me a couple of hours tops. I don't need a babysitter so I won't inflict my company on you."

[LadyTevar]

((ok... maybe we ARE doing the Chicago run.... *sigh* ))

He addressed Argent. "This should only take me a couple of hours tops. I don't need a babysitter so I won't inflict my company on you."

"So the 'few things to talk about' do not include me?" Argent replied in the same tone. "As you wish. I may run errands of my own in other places." Like Millenium, where she could grab some things she'd left at her apartment in Chinatown.